Some NPS archeology facts

Excavations such as this at Booker T. Washington National Monument record
the diversity of our American past. (NPS)

Archeological sites record diversity throughout our past, from some of
the earliest American sites in the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve
to the prehistoric structures and roadways around Chaco Culture National
Historical Park in New Mexico to the foundations of Benjamin Franklin's
house in Philadelphia.

A recent Harris poll reveals that Americans believe that archeology
is important and valuable and helps us to understand the modern world.
90% believe that information from archeological studies should be taught
in schools.

Archeological objects comprise more than half of the approximately 75
million objects in NPS collections.

Archeologists estimate that there may be as many as 1.5 million archeological
sites within National Park System units.

Archeologists add about 2000 sites per year to the inventory of archeological
sites in the parks.

The Archeological Sites Management Information System (ASMIS) was launched
in 1997 to collect information on archeological sites in parks for management
purposes. Over 190 park units have compiled ASMIS data.

The National Archeological Database, Reports module (NADB-R) contains
over 240,000 bibliographical entries consulted by approximately 800 users
per month.

More than 17,000 readers learn about current issues in archeology and
ethnography in the magazine Common Ground.

The Applied Ethnography Program in the NPS National Center for Cultural
Resources works with communities and groups associated with park cultural
and natural resources to understand and address local interests.

Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (1990),
the parks work with tribes and other interested organizations to ensure
that Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects,
and other objects of cultural patrimony are identified, respectfully treated
and repatriated when appropriate.

The Vanishing Treasures Initiative manages and repairs irreplaceable
ancient and historic ruins in the Southwest. The Initiative trains Native
Americans to continue the adobe repair work that their ancestors have
done for centuries.

Two NPS Strategic Plan goals deal with archeological resources-one on
inventory, the other on the condition of archeological sites. These goals
promote accountability of archeological resources in the National Park
System in compliance with the Government Performance and Results Act.